Recognizing that his Detroit Lions are no longer underdogs Head coach Dan Campbell spoke out this week emphasizing that his team is already anticipating certain matchups in the upcoming season.
“I think our guys know where we’re at,” Campbell told Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports. “I would say this: the motivator is we still have things that we circle, too. We have our own s— list. So we’re the team with the target on our back, but we’ve circled some people too now. We have targets, too.”
After years of disappointment and heartbreak, the Lions finally broke through last year, landing themselves in the NFC Championship game. The Lions led 24-7 at halftime in that game but suffered a 34-31 defeat to the San Francisco 49ers.
Continuing on his view of the upcoming season he said, “it’s not like we just ran through everybody last year and blew everybody out…We had losses and tough games. We have division opponents. We lost in the NFC Championship Game. So we’ve got our own targets, man. And that’s the motivator.”
During his conversation with Jones, Campbell acknowledged that the Lions “cracked” when the 49ers “did not” this past January. Detroit will aim to avenge that loss when they play at San Francisco in Week 17 on December 30.
“That’s the little next step we have to get over,” Campbell added. “We have to be able to handle it at that level, even if it’s on the road against the top-tier opponent. That’s the next level.”
As of Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the 49ers as the betting favorites at +250 odds to represent the NFC in Super Bowl LIX this coming February. The Lions were second on the list at +550 odds.